Hanyu Ichiro’s Malt Wine Wood Reserve

This is a blend of malts from the now-closed Hanyu distillery which were finished in a French oak cask that contained Japanese red wine. The vatting and bottling took place at Chichibu distillery in 2010.

The nose is rich and malty. The first flavours to note are vanilla, followed by a hint of honey and bananas. Later on there are notes of sawdust and soap, together with a touch of sherry.

The palate is medium-bodied and spicy. The vanilla is less prominent now and instead there are more honey and orange flavours, followed by dried raisins.

The finish is surprisingly long, spicy and warming, with a touch of mint right at the end.

This was quite well balanced and turned out to be an interesting combo of sweet and dry flavours. Interestingly, there were more sherry flavours than red wine flavours. I would not call this an everyday dram but am happy to have tasted it. As always, many thanks for the sample, Clint A.!

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